Pedro Almodóvar Caballero Pedro Almodóvar Caballero Pedro Almodóvar Caballero ' onMouseout='HidePop("86156")' href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Homosexuality">gay
Homosexuality is the romantic or sexual attraction or behavior among members of the same sex, situationally or as an enduring disposition. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is considered to lie within the heterosexual-homosexual continuum of human sexuality, and refers to an individual’s...
film, it focuses on a complex love triangle between three men. It follows the more serious tone set by his film
MatadorMatador is a film by Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar about a student matador, Ángel , who confesses to murders he didn't commit and begins a romance with his lawyer, María . Themes include sex, death, and religion....
, exploring the ways in which society represses an individual's true desires with tragic consequences.
Plot
Pablo Quintero (
Eusebio PoncelaEusebio Poncela is a Spanish actor.His debut on stage was with"Mariana Pineda".In 1969 appears on screen for first time in "Fuenteovejuna", but his first notable role was the protagonist of the Spanish cult movie Arrebato , directed by Iván Zulueta.Another hit was TVE miniserie Los gozos y las...
) is a homosexual film director whose latest work has just been released. In a party after the
premiereA premiere is generally "a first performance." This can refer to plays, films, television programs, operas, symphonies, and so on. Premieres for theatrical, musical and other cultural presentations can become extravagant affairs, attracting large numbers of socialites and much media attention...
he meets Antonio (
Antonio BanderasJosé Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor and singer. He began his acting career at age 19 with a series of films by director Pedro Almodóvar and then appeared in high-profile Hollywood films including Assassins, Evita, Interview with the Vampire,...
), a beautiful young man who is obsessed with him. At the end of the evening they go home together and Antonio experiences
anal sexAnal sex most often refers to the sex act involving insertion of the penis into the anus. The term anal sex can also sometimes include other sexual acts involving the anus, including Anal–oral sex and fingering...
for the first time, but while Pablo considers that happening just a
lustLust is a craving for sexual intercourse, sometimes to the point of assuming a self-indulgent or violent character. Lust, or a desire for the flesh of another, is considered a sin, or impure act, in the three major Abrahamic religions, although rarely criticized and even encouraged in other...
y episode and is still in love with his long-time lover Juan, the young man misunderstands his intentions and reveals his
possessivePossessive may be:* Possessive case* Possessive adjective* Possessive pronoun* Possessive suffix* Possessive construction, pattern among words indicating possession * For possessive behavior in a relationship, see Attachment in adults...
behaviour as a lover.
Parallel to this is told the dramatic story of Pablo's sister Tina (
Carmen MauraCarmen García Maura is a Spanish actress. In a career that has spanned several decades, Maura is best known for her collaborations with noted Spanish film director Pedro Almodóvar.-Early life:...
), a struggling actress who once was a boy and
changed sex-Sex change in animals:Some species are known to change sex, including reproductive functions, in special circumstances, such as the clownfish. A school of clownfish is always built into a hierarchy with a female fish at the top. When she dies, the most dominant male changes sex and takes her place...
to build a sexual relationship with her father, who eventually left her for another woman. Because of this, she hates men so much it is rumoured that she might be a
lesbianLesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
. She also must care for her niece Ada, whose mother (played by the famed Spanish transsexual actress and singer, Bibí Andersen) is not at home, whom she loves like a daughter.
The thrills begin when a jealous Antonio tries to
rapeRape, also referred to as sexual assault, is an assault by a person involving sexual intercourse with or without sexual penetration of another person without that person's consent....
Juan and ends up throwing him off a cliff. After confronting Antonio about the death, a devastated Pablo has an accident that causes a loss of
memoryIn psychology, memory is an organism's mental ability to store, retain, and recall information. Traditional studies of memory began in the fields of philosophy, including techniques of artificially enhancing the memory....
. The
policeA police service is a public force empowered to enforce the law and provide security through the legitimized use of force.The term is most commonly associated with police services of a state that are authorized to exercise the police power of that state within a defined legal or territorial area of...
suspect both Tina and Pablo for the murder - only a sympathetic doctor keeps them at bay. Tina decides to reveal to Pablo why she is a transexual, and announces she has found a lover, who Pablo finds out too late is actually Antonio. Antonio holds
Tina & Ada hostage in order to demand an hour alone with Pablo. A stunned and limping Pablo agrees, and experiences some tender moments with Antonio before Antonio suddenly kills himself.
Trivia
The film was released the same year that
Fatal AttractionFatal Attraction is a 1987 thriller film about a married man who has a weekend affair with a woman who refuses to allow it to end and who becomes obsessed with him. It stars Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Anne Archer. It was directed by Adrian Lyne...
came out. A major American film with a similar plot about a
one night standOne Night Stand is an HBO stand-up series that first aired on February 15, 1989. The half-hour series aired weekly and featured stand-up comedy specials from some of the top performing comedians. The series originally comprised 55 specials over the course of its four years on HBO...
gone wrong.